Living Environment Regents Practice Test

What type of cell division produces gametes in human males?

1. Mitosis

2. Meiosis

3. Binary fission

4. Cell differentiation

The correct answer is: Meiosis

Meiosis is the type of cell division responsible for producing gametes, specifically sperm cells in human males. This process involves two rounds of division, resulting in four non-identical haploid cells from a single diploid cell, with each haploid cell containing half the number of chromosomes of the original cell. This reduction in chromosome number is crucial for sexual reproduction as it ensures that when gametes fuse during fertilization, the resulting zygote has the correct diploid number of chromosomes. Meiosis also introduces genetic variation through processes such as crossing over and independent assortment, which is vital for evolution and adaptation. In contrast, mitosis is a process of cellular replication that produces two identical diploid daughter cells, not suitable for gamete formation. Binary fission is a method of asexual reproduction in simpler organisms like bacteria, while cell differentiation refers to the process by which cells become specialized in structure and function, rather than a process of division that leads to gamete formation.